[PROJECT]

British Columbia Emergency Flood Relief & Aid

As of 06th April 2022, Sewa Canada International, with help of donors, volunteers, partners and provincial/local relief agencies has raised & provided C$ 26,500, of aid/relief to victims of BC floods in November and December 2021, in disaster hit areas of Southern British Columbia. Scroll down further for details and updates of our work, videos and pictures. 100% of funds raised were transferred to the work on the ground.

Torrential rains swamped rivers and farmland across southern B.C.. This triggered mudslides that blocked every major highway connecting the Lower Mainland to the rest of the country. Many tens of thousands abandoned their homes and thousands, 5 people died, thousands of animals died. To know more about this disaster unfolding in British Columbia, click here.

With support from volunteers of  HSS Canada, North American Hindu Association, Lakshmi Narayan Mandir, Mahalakshmi Temple, South Okanagan Hindu Temple in BC, Sewa Canada International came together to provide aid to the needy victims of these floods.
Our volunteers on the ground in BC made the following necessities available to communities who need it the most, in Southern British Columbia
  • non-perishable food items
  • medicines
  • new warm clothes/ blankets
  • water bottles
  • tents, electric heaters
  • other essential items as deemed necessary in the course of our work.

We procured and airlifted essential items by helicopter and had our volunteers in these locations distribute them to the affected people. A team from Calgary, Alberta procured and drove a truckload of relief materials to Merritt, BC in very hazardous conditions. Scroll down for pictures and detailed updates from the ground

google-photos-2618814

Pictures of our work in  BC Flood Relief & Aid

Update #12 on 06th April 2022
BC Flood Relief 2021 campaign wraps up with the final installment of aid towards reconstruction of homes for the needy, in Merritt BC, handed over to Rotary Club of Merritt, BC, on 6th April 2022. The cheque for C$ 3000 was handed over by our lead volunteer in BC, Chary Ji. A good part of this final installment was fund raised by School children in Calgary & Edmonton. Our gratitude to these children for stepping up to serve.  A total of $26,500 was raised and disbursed for relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction activities for this project. Gratitude to all of our donors and volunteers in British Columbia and Alberta, who served on the ground, in very challenging situations, delivering/distributing this aid.
img_1903-6155477rotary-club-of-merritt-donation-acknowledgement-pdf-7569453

Update #11 on 25th December 2021

BC Floods – On 23rd December, volunteers from our Calgary chapter delivered CAD$ 10,000 of aid to severely flood impacted City of Merritt, BC. Our volunteers drove a total of 1400 Kms from Calgary to Merritt and back in severe winter conditions, over 2 days, including road closures due to Avalanche warnings.

Update #10 on 23rd December 2021

Guru Nanak Food Bank BC & Sewa Canada International volunteers worked in collaboration, to collect and provide emergency food relief to the victims. To know more about Guru Nanak Food Bank, visit https://www.gnfb.ca/

Update #9 on 22nd December 2021

Our youth volunteers at Calgary and other volunteers procures required essentials (based on a list provided by local city authorities) from Costco, totaling about CAD $10,000 for flood victims returning to the badly effected and evacuated city of Merritt, BC. They are currently enroute from Calgary, AB to Merritt BC – a 800 Kilometre drive in winter conditions

Update #8 on 13th December 2021

Past Friday, Sewa Canada International provided approx. CAD $10,000 in aid – 100 School kits with essentials for children, Food & Bread, new socks, new blankets and new essential wear/undergarments, for distribution for the Flood effected victims in Princeton/Merritt areas, through the Princeton City’s Mayor’s office/agencies, Baptist Church, Food Bank and local School Board. https://www.facebook.com/groups/princetonareaissues/permalink/4584126208340048/
whatsapp-image-2021-12-12-at-12-28-52-pm-300x287-8710112whatsapp-image-2021-12-11-at-10-49-00-am-300x287-9067295whatsapp-image-2021-12-08-at-5-38-26-pm-300x225-2712833whatsapp-image-2021-12-12-at-10-50-11-pm-225x300-6160693whatsapp-image-2021-12-11-at-9-36-36-am-300x225-6194070whatsapp-image-2021-12-11-at-10-49-59-am-300x287-2893431whatsapp-image-2021-12-10-at-1-26-48-pm-225x300-8550928whatsapp-image-2021-12-10-at-4-39-49-pm-227x300-4471502

Update #7 on 7th December 2021

Flood warnings and evacuation alerts remain in place as British Columbia looks towards ways to rebuild. Mudslides and extensive waters have damaged highways and disrupted transportation routes. This week our volunteers on the ground in Kelowna have continued to procure and distribute essentials as required by the food banks and city officials in Kelowna, Merritt and Princeton. They have also been fundraising in Kelowna to help us do more. The Summerland Hindu Temple made an initial donation of CAD$ 1,000. More donations are expected this week from their donation drive. The Yellow Cab Union has also generously donated essentials for Merritt. Also procured 100 School bag kits (filled with essentials for children returning to school), for distribution to the needy shortly

whatsapp-image-2021-12-05-at-5-51-26-pm-300x225-5667895whatsapp-image-2021-12-06-at-1-35-03-pm-300x225-7581705whatsapp-image-2021-12-05-at-8-42-37-pm-225x300-5943736whatsapp-image-2021-12-04-at-6-32-59-pm-300x225-6227580

Update #6 on 1st December 2021

Essentials needs & food for those in need loaded up by our volunteers in Vancouver, in a van destined to for flood effected Abbotsford, BC. The shipment will be handed over to the Abbotsford Hindu Mandir, who will distribute it to the needy in the flood impacted areas of Abbotsford.

whatsapp-image-2021-12-01-at-5-11-04-pm-300x225-3571982whatsapp-image-2021-12-01-at-6-00-41-pm-1-300x226-8368842whatsapp-image-2021-12-01-at-5-46-51-pm-2-226x300-7653813

Update #5 on 30th November 2021

Over the past weekend, our volunteers ran multiple campaigns at different sites across Vancouver to collect essential donations for the BC Floods relief effort. These includes many hundred new blankets, jackets, socks donated by Punjab Cloth House. Various essential donations as required on the ground including food donations were facilitated by Sangam Mandir, Ram Mandir & Lakshmi Narayan Mandir in Vancouver. Our gratitude to all of these organizations for their gratitude.

Most of these donations will make its way to Abbotsford tomorrow by road. Abbotsford has been hit by floods again, today. The rest will be dispatched to Merritt, BC, if we can get them on a flight on Thursday.

whatsapp-image-2021-11-28-at-5-01-43-pm-225x300-4535006whatsapp-image-2021-11-28-at-3-26-43-pm-300x225-7638017whatsapp-image-2021-11-27-at-10-02-17-pm-300x225-9821588whatsapp-image-2021-11-27-at-8-06-44-pm-225x300-1323391load1-225x300-5645483

Update #4 on 29th November 2021

200 pounds of Royal Canin Pet Food procured by Sewa Canada International was handed over to BC SPCA (BCSPCA) at their Vancouver branch, by our volunteers today, for distribution in Flood effected areas of BC, to feed animals in need & distress, that they are caring for in these difficult times.

whatsapp-image-2021-11-29-at-7-17-23-pm-300x225-9333012whatsapp-image-2021-11-27-at-7-45-11-pm-225x300-2774728bcspca_thankyouletter-241x300-9354992
Update #3 on 24th November 2021
560 loaves of bread was handed over today to the Food Bank at Kelowna. Flights have not resumed due to bad weather. Land transport to Kelowna from Lower Mainland are facing adverse weather and road conditions and hence stalled. We are exploring bringing in supplies from the East i.e. Calgary in the interim until the weather clears.
Update #2 on  23rd November 2021:
Flight with supplies made it to Merritt BC yesterday on 22nd November. All of the supplies were distributed in Kelowna area by our volunteers in Kelowna – via the local food bank, where people were waiting for essentials. Our volunteers braved bad weather on the roads. Relief Flights have been cancelled due to bad weather for rest of Tuesday and Wednesday. We are however planning to send in  required materials by road (wherever possible). We have planned a delivery of 560 loaves of bread to Kelowna & about 51 Air mattresses and other items by road tomorrow.
whatsapp-image-2021-11-22-at-8-24-27-pm-1-300x225-9820719whatsapp-image-2021-11-22-at-8-24-27-pm-300x169-6305329whatsapp-image-2021-11-22-at-8-24-28-pm-1-169x300-3456425whatsapp-image-2021-11-22-at-8-24-28-pm-169x300-6378742whatsapp-image-2021-11-22-at-2-39-51-pm-225x300-9771868whatsapp-image-2021-11-22-at-2-40-41-pm-225x300-7602560whatsapp-image-2021-11-22-at-2-40-53-pm-225x300-4210832whatsapp-image-2021-11-23-at-12-35-08-am-218x300-8215002whatsapp-image-2021-11-23-at-12-38-19-am-1-300x225-4403521whatsapp-image-2021-11-23-at-12-35-07-am-1-300x225-4895678whatsapp-image-2021-11-23-at-12-35-07-am-300x225-7177993
Update #1 on  22nd November 2021:
Monday morning 11:00 AM PST, our first flight with relief supplies will arrive in Merritt, BC. Our volunteers in BC spent Sunday, procuring Heaters, Twin/Queen air mattresses, Jackets, blankets, water bottles, energy drinks and dry food donations (about 500Kgs) and transporting them to the Langley airport. Monday – On arrival at Merritt airport, our volunteers on the ground from Kelowna Hindu cultural society will collect the aid and distribute 1) Food donations at Kelowna Food Bank 2) Winter clothes and other materials for evacuees at Willow Park Church. This work will pick up more pace in the coming days…updates will follow.
whatsapp-image-2021-11-21-at-8-35-52-pm-300x300-1585465whatsapp-image-2021-11-21-at-8-35-52-pm-1-300x300-1839823whatsapp-image-2021-11-20-at-11-26-42-pm-1-225x300-1095173whatsapp-image-2021-11-20-at-11-26-43-pm-300x225-4869955whatsapp-image-2021-11-20-at-11-26-42-pm-300x225-1936680
Our partners and volunteers on the ground in BC include/drawn from
  • HSS
  • NAHA
  • Abbotsford Temple
  • Laxmi Narayan Temple
  • Shree Mahalakshmi Hindu Temple
  • Kelowna Hindu Cultural Society
  • BKSP( Bhartya Kala Evam Sahitya Parishad)